We propose to establish a Border Biomedical Research Center at The University of Texas at El Paso. The research center will integrate activities in (1) Cell Biology and in (2) Biostatistics. The Cell Biology unit will focus on the development of facilities for biochemistry/molecular biology, hybridoma/cell culture, and analytical cytology. Three new faculty will be recruited who can apply biochemical and molecular biological approaches to the study of infectious diseases, cell cycle regulation, and/or mutagenesis. The Biostatistics unit will promote the use of appropriate and effective statistical methods by Center participants, provide state-of-the-art computing tools for biomedical researchers, and conduct original research in biostatistics. Two new biostatisticians and a staff systems programmer will be recruited. A program of professional development will upgrade the research skills and conceptual approaches of current and future faculty in the Center; and a new information technology system will augment the library's biomedical information retrieval services. The two activity units of the Center will be led by a Program Director in consultation with an Institutional RCMI Advisory Committee. The University will commit to supporting the new faculty and staff positions after termination of the grant, in pursuit of the institution's long-range commitment to the health and educational needs of its international border population. Implementation of these programs and facilities will markedly strengthen the biomedical research infrastructure of the University, develop its capability as a doctoral granting institution in the biomedical sciences, and add to the nation's pool of minority scientists in the fields of cell and molecular biology and biostatistics.